I streamlined my makeup bag and this is what I learnt

I'll admit it: I'm a makeup addict. I hoard near-identical tubes of nude lipstick, having to go hand luggage breaks me out in a cold sweat, my ‘edited’ makeup bag for the gym negates the need to ever do bicep curls and I don’t think it’s ‘too much’ to wear two different mascaras every day.

At least, I used to be. Challenged to whittle down my daily routine, I started to think about whether all these extra products I used were actually adding value or just weight to my handbag.

My end goal when applying my daily face isn’t complicated: I want to look fresh-faced and glowy, with the option to dial things up in the evening if I feel like it. My makeup bag is full of base products: a primer, a tinted moisturiser, under-eye corrector, concealer, highlighter and then powder. Oh, and setting spray. Just to make my skin look a bit better, I was using six things. Six!

Emboldened by the realisation that I was making my beauty routine unnecessarily complicated, I set about decluttering my makeup bag. I was going to need some seriously multi-using products...

The foundation

I started with the new Clarins Skin Illusion Foundation. To my delight, the texture is as light as the serum foundations I’d loved in the past and blends in effortlessly. Even better, the featherweight formula allows me to build up coverage where I want it most (around my nose and chin, usually), but still keep it sheer across the parts of my face where I embrace a little shine. I didn’t feel tempted to add concealer, apart from a dot under my eyes to brighten the area, and considering that it was still on when I left the office that evening, my decision to skip powder was a good one.

The bronzer

Next stop is bronzer that, it turns out, makes a fabulous eyeshadow. After applying my usual dusting down my nose and the high points of my face, I took a smaller brush and buffed it into the creases of my eyes. It immediately adds some depth, makes my eyes appear larger, but still looks incredibly natural. Talk about a trompe l’oeil.

The mascara

Okay, I still used mascara, but I just used my lengthening one, and made sure to fluff up the ends of my lashes for maximum impact. My beauty hack here is that you can kind of make two mascaras out of one. I apply my first coat as normal, then apply a coat to the top of the lashes, making sure to really catch the tips.

The finishing touches

I also dabbed a little cream blusher across the apples of my cheeks, then applied some over my freshly-balmed lips. FYI, lipbalm also makes a great highlighter so that’s one less thing in my kit too.

Et voila! Good to go.

The verdict

@DANIELAKATEBEAUTY​​

Don’t get me wrong, there’s definitely a time to really experiment with makeup and throw all the sparkles and spangles at it. But I'm surprised by how much fresher and more modern I look without the many layers of product. It's subversive in a way; paring things right down and letting you play up your natural features.

The best bit, though, is it takes half the time of my normal routine and saves me from buying a ton of new products. Now, if I go out after work, I just need a hit of lipstick to make me look more ‘done’ and it saves me worrying all day about whether everything’s in place after my third cup of coffee.

My main takeaway? It really does all start with the perfect, radiant base. Once that's locked in, everything else is a doddle. Do you dare to go minimal?

Embrace a minimalist makeup with Clarins Skin Illusion Foundation, available now

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